All The Difference
by Knife Hand
Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future. Chap 8 now up
1. Chapter 1

Title: All the Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons.

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1 or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

AN2: Title comes from a poem, can't remember who wrote it. 'Two roads diverge in a shadowed wood. I took the one less travelled, and that has made all the difference.'

* * *

SG-1 sat around the main conference room table with General Hammond at the head.

"Sir? What is this about?" Major Carter asked.

"At oh-five-thirty this morning, two people came through the Stargate. One was a civilian and the other appeared to be a Marine Lieutenant Colonel." Hammond explained. "As soon as they stepped through, they surrendered. They were unarmed and have been in one of the VIP quarters under heavy guard."

"So, how does this involve us, sir?" O'Neill asked.

"In two ways, Colonel. Firstly, the Marine asked specifically to speak to SG1, mentioning you all by name, and secondly, they arrived using SG-1's Iris code."

"The one we just got?" Daniel asked.

"The one we haven't used yet?" Sam added.

"Yes." Hammond responded, before hitting the intercom. "Show them in."

The door opened and the new arrivals entered, guarded by two SF's. They were both dressed in green fatigues. The man was in his mid fifties, his dark hair greying at the temples, but his posture and bearing of his six foot plus frame showed he was still fit and active. The only decoration he wore, besides the Marine corpse insignia on his chest and the silver oak leaves of a Lt Colonel, which rested comfortably at his shoulders, was a simple gold wedding ring. The woman seemed awkward in the fatigues; her deep black hair was pulled back in a ponytail, contrasting with her deep olive complexion. She was only in her mid thirties, but she had the eyes of someone older. After Hammond dismissed the SF's, he bid them to sit. The Colonel sat down the table next to Carter, while the woman sat across from him, next to Teal'c.

"Perhaps we should start with introductions…" Hammond began.

"Of course. First of all, I recognise Teal'c and Dr Jackson from meetings around the SGC." The marine began, indicating to the Jaffa and the Archaeologist, who was sitting between Carter and General Hammond. "General O'Neill I remember from fleet meetings at the Office of Homeworld Security. That makes you General Hammond, fitting the descriptions I have heard from General Har… Carter."

The shock around the room was palatable.

"You see any stars on these shoulders?" Jack asked, pointing to his Colonel's Eagle insignia.

"Not for a few years. You can call me Skipper, all my crew did. This young lady… you can call her Min Farshaw."

Major Carter snorted at the name of the young woman, causing 'Skipper' to smile.

"Major?" Hammond asked.

"Sir, Min Farshaw is a character from a book series called The Wheel of Time. She can see visions of the future." Carter replied.

"You always did love those books." Skipper said. "Figured it out yet?"

Sam's brow furrowed for a second then she stared at Skipper.

"How far?" she asked.

"Thirty-seven." He replied.

"Carter?" Jack asked.

"Sixty-nine, sir." She replied.

"Good year." Jack said, still confused.

"Time travel?" Daniel asked.

"Brilliant as always." 'Min' said.

"You've come back thirty-seven years?" Hammond asked.

"Yeah." Skipper responds. "And I just know that Sam's going to claim we shouldn't be telling you anything we are about to tell you, but that has one major drawback."

"Being?" Carter asked.

"You sent us." 'Min' pipped in, looking strait at Crater.

Shocked silence fell over the room.

"I think we need a break." General Hammond said.

* * *

"Report, Doctor."

General Hammond, Major Carter and Doctor Frasier sat in General Hammond's office while the visitors were back in their rooms after having lunch in the refectory with Colonel O'Neill, Doctor Jackson and Teal'c.

"Sir, they are dieing. 'Min' has terminal bone cancer. I would say that she has only a week or two to live, except that she is showing none of the secondary symptoms. As for the Lieutenant Colonel, well I discovered during an MRI that he has a sharp shard lodged millimetres from his heart. It took me a while to realise that it was metal." Janet said.

"Metal. That's impossible." Sam blurted out.

"Major?" Hammond asked.

"Sir, the magnetic field generated by the MRI would have ripped the metal shard right out of his chest and right through the machine." Sam explained.

"We'll just have to see how they explain this." General Hammond said, dismissing the two officers.

* * *

SG1, General Hammond, Dr Frasier and the new arrivals once again sat around the conference table in the briefing room, the SGC personal reeling to understand the comment they had just heard.

"Magic?" Janet said incredulously.

"There are lost of historical references to magic but I always believed that they were either tricks or the use of technology that the observer failed to understand." Dr Jackson began before seeing the smirk on the marine Colonel's face. "What?"

"Sorry Daniel. You just reminded me of someone I used to know." Skipper replied.

"There has never been any scientific evidence of the existence of magic." Sam stated.

Skipper saw Min getting angry and about to blurt out, so he put a restraining hand on her shoulder. After a glace at him, she calmed down and let him respond.

"As one scientist said 'There is no gravity, what we are observing is a completely different phenomenon with the exact same properties.' A lot of people exposed to magic tend to rationalise it away as something else. And as you told me on more than one occasion Sam, 'Absence of proof is not proof of absence.'"

"Nice sentiment Colonel, but do you expect us to take your word?" Hammond asked.

"No sir. How about Sam's word?"

"What have you got future Carter stuffed in your pants?" Jack asked, earning a fierce glare from Sam.

"No Colonel." Skipper responded. "If you would have the SF's bring the box we came with, General?"

Hammond called in a guard to fetch the box and bring it back. Upon opening it they found a keypad and a touchpad mouse which doubled as a hand print scanner, but no monitor.

"General, please put your hand on the scanner." Skipper said.

Hammond placed his hand on the pad and a four sided screen appeared in the space above the box, which had rapidly scrolling text that no one was able to read.

"Identifying." A female voice said from the box.

"Was that…?" Jack asked.

"What can I say? The programmer had the hots for Angelina Jolie." Skipper said with a shrug. "Her personal computer had a dancing holographic Angelina as the screensaver."

"Identity confirmed. General George Hammond, Retired. Last posting Commanding Officer, International Space Fleet and Homeworld Security, Washington DC. Retired September 23rd, 2013. Access granted." The computer said as the display changed to a pail blue screen. "Awaiting command."

"Tell it to run briefing one." Skipper instructed. "It will only respond to your voice pattern."

"Run briefing one." General Hammond said hesitantly, having taken his hand off the pad.

"Confirmed."

The four faces of the screen changed into identical images of Sam from the shoulders up. She looked much older, tired and sad. She was dressed in class 'A' uniform with two silver stars sitting on each shoulder. The room behind her was clearly identifiable as General Hammond's office, but with a change in the personal effects on the wall and cabinet behind her.

"Greeting General Hammond, SG1 and, I assume by the time the Colonel gets around to showing you this, Janet as well. I'm sure you have a number of questions, including why the Skipper and his companion, who I'm sure he has come up with a suitable pseudonym for, probably Ghanima or Min, I had to order him not to us Rip Van Winkle, have been sent back in time. Another major question you have, or will once you examine them, is why them since they are dieing." The Sam on the screen sighed before continuing. "The answer to the first question is that we had to change the way things are going. All of Earth's allies have been annihilated, and now it's our turn. I can't say more at the moment, but we needed help and a head start. To that end this computer contains plans to a series of technological advancements that are developable under current or near current Earth capabilities. Some of these plans will be locked until certain technological milestones have been reached. To answer the second question, it revolves around magic…"

The SGC personnel stared at the display in shock as the future version of Sam laid out some pretty remarkable events.

* * *

The next day saw Sam in her lab, looking over the plans that the futuristic computer had released, which General Hammond had copied onto a burnt disk for her, and marvelling at the wealth of information they contained. For the moment she had put aside the plans for guns, power generation units and armour in order to examine the plans for the space vessels. There were two designs for space based fighters. The first was obviously designed to mimic and counter the Death Gliders, its shape closely resembling that of the enemy craft. It was designated the F-302 "Mongoose", and was designed as a two seat Fighter/Interceptor, equipped with 4 different engine types to allow both in atmospheric and space flight, one of which allowing the F-302 to perform short hyperspace jumps. The F-302 had an armament of modified AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles as well as two wing root mounted 20mm Vulcan cannons, and is constructed in modular sections to allow easy transport through the Gate.

The second fighter design had a much more terrestrial design. It was called the SA-43 "Hammerhead", the nickname derived from the small proto-wings at the nose of the craft which vaguely resembled a Hammerhead Shark. The single seat SA-43 had a much more modular design than the F-302, which not only allowed for ease of repair, be simply changing out modules, but also afforded the fighter a much greater combat versatility, being able to be adapted for almost any conceivable role, including SAR operations. The primary configuration resulted in a Fighter/Interceptor/Ground Support aircraft that had more agility and adaptability than the sturdier and slightly faster F-302. With a gimbal mounted light Rail gun under the nose of the aircraft able to sweep a 50 degree arc, two wing mounted hard points capable of mounting almost any pylon mountable armament or equipment in the US armoury and twin, dorsal mounted heavy cannon turret, capable of 180 degree rear auto targeting and tracking with 30 degree elevation, in the traditional blind spot of above and behind the craft, the SA-43 is a deadly aircraft.

Still amazed with the two fighters, Sam began to skim through the attached notes for the two larger ship designs. One of the designs, the Valkyrie Class, seemed to be a frigate style patrol vessel, with a fair amount of firepower loaded onto a relatively small hull, with the recommended operational tour length being around two weeks, as life support systems were sacrificed to allow for more weaponry. The class was designed to defensively patrol systems and be able to engage any hostile ships long enough for assistance to arrive.

That assistance would be in the form of the Prometheus Class Light Cruiser (Mark IV). Sam was just about to launch into studying the Cruiser's schematics and design notes when she was interrupted by a clearing voice. Thinking it was Colonel O'Neill, she turned towards the door.

"Don't stress so much Sam. Those plans aren't going anywhere."

The ease at which the Skipper was leaning against the door frame in her lab, the unconscious way he avoided touching any of her equipment and the slight hint to his voice, similar to the one Jack had when he was once again ordering her to go home after twenty odd hours in the lab, gave Sam, for one brief instant, a feeling of intense familiarity with the newly arrived Marine.

"They're just… there's so much here." She said, trying to contain her scientific enthusiasm.

She frowned slightly when he chuckled.

"Sorry Sam. It's just we spent almost thirty years working together on those designs and other projects. It is odd to see you so excited when there's no ship in the slips. You look like a kid in an electronics shop."

"The saying is a kid in a candy shop." Sam replied.

"Yeah, but you preferred soldering irons and circuit boards to candy as a child." Skipper said with a grin. "I've only seen you more excited on three occasions. The last was when we lanced 'Joyce's Hope', my Valkyrie class ship."

"When were the other two?" Sam couldn't help asking.

"Ask me some other time. I might even tell you." He smiled. "Hammond want's to see us."

"Right." Sam said, slightly annoyed at the cryptic response.

She quickly packed up and followed Skipper to the briefing room, where The General, Min and the rest of SG1 waited.

"Major, Colonel. Please be seated. Since General Carter's briefing yesterday, with presidential approval, we have been searching for the two mentioned individuals. Private Alexander Harris will be here by the end of next week, he has just left on leave after the end of basic training with the Marines. The other individual, one Tara Mclay, we are having more difficulty in locating. We have records of her leaving her home town in Kansas a little over two weeks ago. We have enrolment records to UC Sunnydale, but she is not scheduled there for another week." General Hammond explained.

There was silence for a few moments.

"Oxnard." Skipper said, stunning the room.

"Whonard?" Jack asked.

"Oxnard. She'll be in Oxnard for four days starting tomorrow. Once she told me she stopped there for almost a week before she started at UC Sunnydale." Noting the startled looks he continued. "So I know her. From the future, remember."

"Ok. SG1, head to Oxnard and retrieve Miss Mclay." Hammond ordered.

"General. Teal'c should not go; she'll get spooked when she senses him. I suggest you send Dr Frasier instead and have her and Sam make contact. Miss Mclay is nervous around men until she gets to know them."

"Very well." Hammond said. "Dismissed"

"Senses him?" Daniel said.

"Sam?!?" Jack fumed.

TBC….


	2. Chapter 2

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

* * *

Major Sam Carter, dressed in civilian clothing, sat at a small coffee shop in the tiny town of Oxnard, slowly sipping on her coffee while she waited for Tara Maclay to approach the motel opposite the coffee shop. Miss Maclay was expected to check out tomorrow evening, and SG1 had been observing her for the last two day to figure out the best way to contact her. Both Sam and Daniel used this coffee shop, Daniel having been told too after he almost missed Miss Maclay leaving the motel because he was browsing in the bookstore on the corner. Janet used the bookstore as her post while the Colonel used the hardware store down the street. Right now the rest of the team were back at the only other accommodation in Oxnard, a small Hotel on the other side of town. 

Taking another sip of the coffee that was marginally better than the SGC's commissary, and nowhere near as good as the special blends that Daniel stocked, her being the only other person allowed to touch it, as one unlucky scientist found out, Sam finally spotted Miss Maclay coming along the street. The first indication of trouble was the squeal of tires as the white minivan screeched around the corner behind Miss Maclay and pulled up between the young woman and Major Carter. Sam moved instantly, standing from the table while pulling her cell phone out of her leather jacket pocket.

"Sir, something's going down. A white minivan just kidnapped the target outside the motel heading west. I'm in pursuit." She said before hanging up, pocketing the phone and jumping on her rental motorbike out the front of the coffee shop.

Just before she took off after the van, Sam activated the tracking device they had installed on the bike. After about two blocks the van had slowed down to within the speed limit. Sam followed at a careful distance so as not to give herself away. She growled softly to herself, she was unarmed except for a 9mm Beretta in a holster at the small of her back. She seriously wanted to harm these agents. In her mind there could only be one group behind this grab, the NID. The minivan took a meandering route through the small town before pulling into the garage of an unassuming suburban house on the outskirts. Carter pulled up the bike at the corner of the block, behind cover of a house and waited, watching the house.

A few minutes later, a car pulled up next to the bike.

"Sit Rep." Colonel O'Neill ordered.

* * *

The doors burst in, followed quickly By SG1. Jack and Daniel came in the front door, Jack with an MP5 while Daniel covered him with a Zat. Sam led in the back door being covered by Janet. One NID agent went down in the first three seconds to a burst from Sam's silenced MP5. As they quickly searched the lower level of the house, two more NID agents fell, one to Jack's MP5 and the other to Daniel's Zat. Once the ground floor was clear, Jack and Daniel headed upstairs while Sam led the way down to the basement. Sam saw the situation even as she moved down the stairs. Tara was tied up and gagged while an NID agent stood off to her left, just turning towards the stairs. A quick burst from the MP5 cut down the agent. Sam did a quick scan of the room while Janet rushed to Tara, removing her gag. Seeing nothing immediate, Sam started to walk towards Janet and Tara, the doctor asking if the young lady was alright. A slight creaking sound alerted Carter, but she knew she could not turn fast enough. Tara's eyes flicked to something behind Sam and she said a single word with all the authority in the world. 

"Immobilis."

Sam was surprised that she managed to finish turning. Almost as surprised as when she saw the agent with the pistol aimed strait at her, not moving as if the air around him had solidified.

"Magic?" Janet asked.

"Y-Y-Yes." Tara stammered.

"Guess I'll never question future versions of myself again." Carter said semi-disbelievingly.

"Carter! Everything ok down there?" Jack called from the top of the stairs.

"Clear, Sir. Miss Maclay is safe." She called back.

"Ok. Let's get her back to the Mountain, Major." Jack said. "Refec staff lost a bet. Tomorrow we get a two foot high Homer Simpson made of Jello."

Janet chuckled softly while Tara looked confused.

"He's harmless." Sam said. "Major Samantha Carter. You can call me Sam. We have, I guess you could call it a job offer, for you."

* * *

Private Xander Harris sat rigidly, as if at a seated form of attention, as his eyes skirted around the briefing room. He had no real idea why the flyboys wanted a private just out of boot in their top secret base, hell he had done more paperwork reading and signing the non-disclosure forms than he had in High School. Not that he had done much work in School. 

The first thing he had noted was the pair of SF's at the door to the corridor and at the stairs, his Sunnydale instincts heightened by his training, seeking all possible exits.

At the head of the table was a stocky, balding Air Force Major General, Hammond his nametag declared. Beside him sat a shy seeming civilian, a pretty young woman who seemed overwhelmed by her surroundings but had a deep, almost hidden, sense of calm and power. Across from him was a greying Full Bird Colonel with a sardonic grin, a stunningly beautiful blonde Major, her eyes possessing the glint of extraordinary intelligence he associated with Willow, a civilian with short brown hair and glasses that reminded him of Giles and a large black man, whose bearing suggested military despite the complete lack of rank insignia, with a gold emblem on his forehead who gave off something similar to demony Hellmouth vibes.

Dr Jackson, the younger Giles, explained about the Stargate Project. Evil parasitic snakes with a superiority complex, small teams saving the world on short notice, sometimes by the skin of their teeth. Sounded just like High School. Did explain the weird vibe from Teal'c, the big black guy, who had a larval bad guy in his stomach.

He wondered again why he was here, then he took another look at the young woman next to him. She was the key, with her long flowing skirts, the hidden sense of power and the lingering scent of lavender and incense. She had to be a Witch. Sounds like this command ran into something Demonic and figured a Sunnydale alum and a Witch were the answer.

"General, Sir. Why exactly have I been given clearance for this? I take it you don't inform every new Marine Private of this project. I have a few theories, but some things just don't add up." Xander said, semi-formally.

"Send them in." Hammond said to one of the SF's.

Two people walked in, one was a Marine Lt Colonel who grinned as soon as he laid eyes on Xander, while the other was a young Latin woman in her mid thirties. The Colonel was instantly familiar, looking like pictures of his Maternal Grandfather, who everyone said Xander strongly resembled.

"You can take the boy from the Hellmouth." Xander muttered.

"But you can't take the Hellmouth out of the boy." The colonel replied.

"At least I age gracefully." Private Xander Harris said, earning a chuckle from Colonel Alexander Harris.

* * *

Tara watched from behind her hair, a trick that hid her own facial expressions while allowing her to observe freely. She was nervous about being around so many men, judging by the example of the men in her hometown, most were violent, cruel and hateful. The young man seated next to her was the only man in the room she was comfortable with, having caught a flash of his aura when they had first met at the surface. He was a sentinel, a guardian. He would die to save a stranger, but he would gladly march into hell help a friend. True sentinels were a rare thing. Something felt off, and she did not just mean the uneasy feeling she got from the larval symbiont in Teal'c pouch, not fear but more a natural aversion, like racial enemies from ages past. 

When the two newcomers enter she immediately sensed what had been off. They were out of time. The woman was also a Witch, and dieing of Cancer, the blackness of the infection permeating her aura, as well as the residual magic from the purging of toxins that cause secondary symptoms. She recognised the new man as the future version of the sentinel. After a quick byplay with his younger self, the man started to turn towards the assembled group, but when the Witch opened her mouth, he put a hand on her arm, stopping her from speaking.

"We are here to kick start Humanity's role as the Fifth Race." Skipper announced.

"That's what the Asguard said we could become." Jack said.

"Oh yeah. Speaking of the Asguard. File Omega-Three-Six on the computer needs to be sent to them. Tell Thor that the password is 'What his Hammer Guards'. He'll understand." Skipper said with a slight grin.

"What is it?" Carter asked, intrigued.

"We believe it is the answer to the problem with their cloning technology. Also something that General... I mean, Major Carter came up with to stop the Replicators." Min added.

"The who-li-whats??" O'Neill asked, confusion evident on his face.

"Not important. Needless to say it will make they will be grateful to us for saving their little grey butts... again." Skipper added. "But back to the topic. Tara... Miss Maclay is, or rather will be, the head of an independent force of trained Magic users, who by their nature are immune to being taken host by either Goa'uld or Tok'ra. Private Harris, after going through OCS, is to be given a position overseeing the construction and operation of, to start with, Home System Fleet."

Everyone in the room, except for Min, stared at Skipper in disbelief and awe.

"All the documentation is in the computer, signed by the current President." He added. "Should have seen his face when we asked his to sign an executive order when he had been out of the White House for over thirty years."

Min chuckled slightly at that. She had been there.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Title:

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

* * *

Tara sat uncomfortably in the VIP quarters that had been assigned to her in the SGC. The room itself was warm and comforting, but it was being surrounded by so much concrete and so many men that was unsettling her. A knock at the door shocked her out of her introspection.

"Come in." She said, her voice barely loud enough to be heard.

The door opened and the temporally dislocated Witch entered, holding a large, leather bound book in her hands. 'Min' carefully placed the tome on the coffee table in the room, the knelt before Tara with her head lowered.

"War Mistress, it is an honour." She said.

"Please, stand." Tara said, nervously. "What is your name?"

"Warrior Witch, Gamma Grade, Maria West, Firebrand Division. Assigned to the Valkyrie Class vessel 'Joyce's Hope', Home System Flotilla." 'Min' replied, raising to her feet. "You ordered me to report to you at the first opportunity on this side of the timeline, War Mistress."

"Why do you call me War Mistress?" Tara asked.

"Because that is your rank within the Order. You lead us, War Mistress." Maria replied.

"Tell me about this Order." Tara said. "Sit please. And call me Tara."

"Yes War... Tara." Maria replied as they both took seats around the coffee table.

"What is this book?"

"It is your Book of Shadows ... Tara. The basis of our Order."

* * *

"Hey." Skipper said as he sauntered into Carter's office, his hands in his pockets.

It had been almost a month since Private Harris had left of OCS and in that time 'Min' had been spending almost all her time with Tara, trying to impart as much knowledge as possible while her body grew constantly weaker.

"Hey." Carter replied absently. "There's something I don't understand."

"Shoot." Colonel Harris replied, leaning up against one of the lab tables.

"Min has terminal bone cancer, but we know that a symbiote can heal cancer, so why did she not blend with a Tok'ra, like my dad did?"

"First of all, she did not want to blend with a Tok'ra. And secondly, she's a Witch." Harris said as if that explained everything.

"Why does her being a Witch have anything to do with it?"

"Because, no Witch or Mage can be taken over or blended with a snake. The snake tries it, they die. Not that they would try it. Magic users and Goa'uld instinctively know each other, natural enemy thing. That's why we have members of the Order on every ship and at every accessible base and dockyard."

"That's amazing." Carter said to herself.

"Actually, I just dropped by to give you this." Skipper said, tossing a burnt DVD on to Carter's desk. "You need to watch this. Now."

Skipper walked towards the door.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Goodbye Sam." He said, closing the door.

"I love you." He whispered as the door clicked shut, low enough that Sam could not hear.

Sam put the burnt DVD into her laptop and ran the video file on it. It was immediately obvious that the file had been burnt from the computer that Skipper and Min had brought with them by the amazing quality of the image, which was of herself. The image was the same age as the she had been in the briefing, but this time the scene was not the SGC. Dressed in a white blouse and Jeans and was seated on a comfortable sofa in a nicely decorated living room.

"If you are watching this, then Xander decided that you needed to hear a few things. I decided to leave it in his hands, as he knows me better than anyone else on, or off, the planet. One of the first things you need to hear is, don't work so hard. My biggest regret is that for so many years, I never looked up from my work. Sure, we were exploring the galaxy and seeing amazing things, but I was so focused on work that I missed so many opportunities. I almost missed the most important moments of my life."

The Sam on screen paused, taking a deep breath, when the sound of a door opening and a shadow played on the screen.

"Mommy?" a small, female voice queried.

A dark haired six year old girl rushed on screen and sat in her mother's lap.

"What you doing mommy?" she asked.

"I'm recording a message for myself, honey." Sam said.

"Why? Won't you remember?" the little girl asked.

"No, honey. It's for me in the past. Remember? I'll watch this before you were born."

"Oh yeah." The little girl said, before turning to the camera. "Hello, past mommy. I'm Janet Lyn Harris. Can I have some ice-cream?"

The last was said to image Sam.

"Sorry, Mom. The she got away from me." Another female voice said, accompanying the image of a twenty-two year old dressed in Air Force Dress Blues, with Lieutenant bars on her shoulders.

"That's ok Joyce. Can you get her some ice-cream and put her to bed? I want to finish this."

"No problem, mom. Come on Janet." Joyce said leading her little sister by the hand, closing the door behind them.

"Those were my... our daughters. We also have a son, Jacob, he's 15. He wants to go into the SGC, like me. Joyce has just joined the Fleet, like her dad. As you no doubt have guess Xander Harris, Skipper, is their father... my husband."

The image cut to a church, with Sam gliding down the aisle in a beautiful white gown, with a long flowing train. Jack O'Neill, in his Dress Blues, was leading Sam down the aisle to give her away. Standing proud in formal Marine Corps uniform, Xander was standing at the end of the aisle with Daniel, an older gentleman with glasses and a redheaded woman, all in tuxedos as his groomsmen. Carter recognised an older Tara Maclay and an older Cassandra Frasier among her Bridesmaids.

The film played out with the wedding, and on to the reception, including scenes from the dance floor with Sam dancing with Jack and General Hammond, Xander dancing with Tara and the Redhead in the Tux, even Tara and the Redhead dancing.

The scene played on a bit more before cutting back to Sam in the living room.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I'm showing you all this, seeing as it probably won't happen now. I guess it's to show you that you can be happy. Don't be so busy trying to save the world that you are no longer a part of it. Live, because I no longer have that option. No regrets though. I had an amazing life."

The image carter gave one last sad smile, then switched off the recorder. The screen went blank.

Carter sat back in her chair, shocked, tears running silently down her face. The phone on the wall rang.

"Carter." She answered.

"Sam." Dr Frasier's voice came through the phone.

"Yeah Janet?" she said, barely keeping her voice from cracking.

"Sam, Min died twelve minutes ago. As soon as she died, Skipper collapsed. We found the metal shard protruding from his back. He died instantly."

Sam hung up the phone without a word, slid to the ground and wept.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

********

Sam stared down at the photo as she rode in the back of the Hummer. She knew she was torturing herself, but she could not help it.

"Who are they, Sam? Family?" Daniel asked from next to her.

Sam looked up at her team-mate and the back down at the photo.

"Something like that." She replied, studying the image again. She was absorbed in studying a pair of soulful brown eyes.

"You take the picture?"

"No. I've never actually met them. I probably never will."

"Oh. Sorry." Daniel said, looking out the window to leave Sam in peace.

A slight smile flickered across Sam's lips. Daniel assumed they were dead, and in a way, that was true. Taking in the image as a whole she saw a young woman with short brown hair and beautiful blue eyes, dressed in a Air Force Lieutenant's uniform leading a brown eyed, blond haired little girl in dressed in a red dress. Two people she had never met... her daughters.

In the eight months since Skipper had died, she had made a number of still photographs from the video footage, which she kept in an album in her house, but the photo of Joyce and Janet she always kept on her, but this was the first time one of her team had caught her looking at it.

"Major. Doctor. We are here." The driver said, pulling up.

Sam and Daniel got out of the Hummer and stared across a series of Limestone buildings that resembled a University campus. Standing by the entrance was Lieutenant Xander Harris and Tara Mclay awaiting them.

"Major Carter, Doctor Jackson. Welcome to the Yard." Lieutenant Harris said.

Sam winced internally at Xander's military use of her name. She was conflicted. On one hand she knew she could love him, hell according to the recording they had spent almost twenty years happily married. On the other, she had only briefly met the younger man standing in front of her. The father of her children who may never exist. Even for a genius with a PHD in astrophysics and experience with time travel, it gave her a headache.

"Why the yard?" Daniel asked.

'Good old practical Daniel.' Sam thought idly.

"Courtyard above, dockyard below." Xander replied. "Let's show you around."

The first section of the tour was of the university section, the Courtyard, which educated the Fleet personnel and members of the Order. To all outward appearances it seemed like a normal university, but one with a definite military bent. One group was performing drills on green that was surrounded by four buildings, each with a covered walkway separating it from the green, a row of arches provided access from the walkways onto the green.

'This is familiar.' Sam thought.

"Are those Fleet personnel?" Daniel asked, nodding to the drilling group.

"Fleet and Order." Tara replied, quietly.

"We train everyone together because most Order members will be assigned to fleet vessels or military bases." Xander clarified.

They continued around the grounds for a while before something finally clicked.

"Jacarandas!" Sam said suddenly.

"Huh?" Daniel said confused.

"Yeah, we could not get them imported. Stupid customs." Xander replied.

"This is almost an exact replica of the University of Queensland campus in Australia." Sam explained to Daniel. "The only thing missing are the Jacaranda trees."

"Yes, well Professor Trickett was the first lecturer to sign on, and when he found out that we had not even drawn up plans, he insisted we replicate his old campus." Xander explained. "It helped cut down the lead time and what with the Air Force and Navy Engineers, we had both facilities built in under four months."

"Wait. Professor Joseph Trickett? One of the best Quantum Physicist on the planet." Sam asked.

"Yes. He was teaching advanced Chemistry when we approached him. Lovely atmosphere down there. Did you know they have a plaque to commemorate your visit at Wordsmiths Cafe? One of the reasons Joseph agreed was for a chance to meet you."

Daniel chuckled to himself at Sam's expression of outright shock. One of the Physicists she admired the most was a fan of her work.

"So he teaches, what? Astronavigation? Wormhole physics?" Daniel asked.

"No, actually. Though Major Carter will recognise many of the equations." Harris replied.

"So what does he teach?"

"Magical Theory."

Both Daniel and Sam stared, stunned, at the quiet blonde's words.

"It's all manipulation of Energy." Tara explained. "You use machines, we don't."

"Professor Trickett will be happy to explain after the tour. He has standing request for lunch with both of you. And he made it before we told him you were on SG1."

********

After the tour of the campus above, the tour went underground to the dockyard. Lieutenant Harris and War Mistress Mclay had been joined by a Navy Commander who led the two members of SG1 to the observation gantry high above the dockyard floor. The floor was divided into four massive berths. The first birth was empty, but the floor was divided into twenty roped off areas that appeared tiny from the gantry.

"This is where we make to 302's and 43's. We've suspended constructing the fighters. We have five complete squadrons of each but we only have one and a half squadrons of pilots for each." Harris explained.

They moved on to the second berth which housed three ships, each with only a few people moving on the construction gantries.

"The first three Valkyrie class." The Navy Command announced, "The Brynhild, The Joan of Arc and The Samantha Carter."

Absolute silence descended, Sam and Daniel in shock. Tara stood there shaking her head while Xander glared at the Navy Commander.

"What?"

"You are a complete idiot, Dodge." Harris said, before turning to the Major. "Sorry Sam. We're naming the Valkyries after great female warriors. No one in recent years comes close to you."

"The next one will be call The Slayer." Tara said quietly. "For all of the Slayers who are not known or can never be publically acknowledged."

"Anyway. The Valkyries are basically ready. They are Spaceworthy and will be ready for a fight in about three days, it's mostly just doing final fitting. Let's move on to the Prometheus' berths." Xander said.

The last two berths were completely filled with the skeleton of a single Prometheus class vessel. In berth 3 the skeletal structure was complete and the basic internal structure and hull had been begun at the prow of the vessel. The vessel in berth 4 had only 70 percent of its skeleton completed.

"PM1 should be ready in about two months. PM2 about a month after that. It takes about 5 and a half months from start to finish for a Prometheus." Dodge explained.

"No names for the yet?" Daniel asked.

"No. We're waiting till it closer to launch dates." Xander replied. "But for now, it's lunch time and Professor Trickett will be waiting."

********

"Major, Doctor. I have read your report." General Hammond said. "Anything to add?"

"Well, Sir." Carter began. "They have a Quantum Physicist teaching Magic and A Navy Sub Commander overseeing their construction of the big ships."

"And a Valkyrie named after Sam." Daniel added in.

"So your assessment?" Hammond prompted.

"They play by their own rules, they are quite insane and they are the best at what they do. Just like us." Daniel concluded.

"I agree. Unconventional but efficient." Sam added.

General Hammond sat considering for a moment before he was interrupted by the ringing of the red phone.

"Hammond." He answered before pausing to listen for a minute. "Understood."

Hammond hung up the phone and sighed.

"I hope you are both right. NORAD's deep space just picked up a number of Goa'uld ships on the outer edge of the Solar System. Looks like Multiple Pyramid Ships."

"I'll go inform the Colonel." Carter said, leaving the room.

TBC…


	5. Chapter 5

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

********

"All stations report ready for launch, Captain." Lieutenant Harris reported.

"Thank you, Lieutenant." Major Sam Carter replied.

It was a surreal experience. Not only was she about to captain one of the first human made interstellar vessels, but it was one that bore her name.

"This is Carter. Ready for launch." She reported into the ship to ship comms.

It did have one advantage.

"This is The Brynhild. Ready for launch." Came Colonel O'Neill's voice over the radio.

"Joan of Arc, Ready." Came the voice of Commander Tom Dodge, who had given her the tour.

There were only a crew of six on each of the Valkyries for this outing, the four bunks for the two dockable 302's empty. Jack and Teal'c were the Captain and XO of the Brynhild, while Daniel was acting as sensors and radio operator on the Joan of Arc, and expert on the Goa'uld under Commander Dodge and his XO, Lieutenant Emily Dodge.

On the Samantha Carter, Xander was her XO, her engineer/weapons was a navy enlisted by the name of Stapanic, who had served with Dodge before in the sub service. The pilot was a gifted young Naval Ensign called Ymi, who with her small stature and delicate Asian features looked more suited to being a dancer than a pilot. Sensor and Radio operator was a large African-American Airman by the name of Williams while the sixth member of the crew was a former SGC Air Force Sergeant, William White, and now a Battle Mage of the Order.

"Let's Launch." Sam said, as the massive hanger doors retracted.

********

The three Valkyrie class ships were joined in space by the Snake Eaters Squadron flying the F302 Mongoose and the Silent Predators squadron in the SA43 Hammerhead. Each squadron consisted of twenty fighters, with the remaining trained pilots being stationed back at the Yard for both final air defence and to train the current batch of trainees.

The Carter was on the left flank of the Valkyries, with ten Silent Predators to her left and the rest on the far right flank guarding the Brynhild. The Snake Eaters were spread to the rear of the flotilla behind the line of Valkyries.

As they passed the orbit of Mars, the planet itself an angry red orb several hundred thousand kilometres away, the Flotilla made contact with the Goa'uld Hatak vessels. The four pyramid ships came steadily on, launching over seventy Death Gliders between them. The Gliders came in on a direct run at the Valkyries, but as they had planned, the anti-fighter ordinance of the three ships was enough to keep the fighters at bay while the SA43's came in from the flanks. As the Predators engaged the Gliders, the glider pilots turned away from the bigger ships, and that is when the Snake Eaters' pounced. Using the limited Hyperdrive capacity of the F302's, they jumped into the gap forming to the centre rear of the Glider's formation, and began hammering into them from the sides and rear. With the glider force effectively split down the middle, the two dogfights tumbled off to the sides of the conflict leaving the Valkyries to face off against the pyramid ships.

Just as the ships were entering weapons range of each other, the Hatak on the far right of the human line opened fire. Not on the Valkyries, but on the Hatak next to it managing to do a significant amount of damage.

"Captain, listen to this." Williams said, piping the audio to the overhead speakers.

"Ontrol of the vessel and have subdued the remaining Jaffa. Repeat, Attention Tauri Vessels, this is Martouf of the Tok'Ra. We have killed the Goa'uld on the Kes'lat, and we now have control of the vessel and subdued or isolated the remaining Jaffa."

"Mark that Hatak as a friendly." Sam ordered.

"Rodger, Captain." Williams said. "The Kes'lat has done significant damage to the other ship. The Brynhild and The Joan of Arc are bracketing the middle enemy vessel. Commodore O'Neill is ordering us to engage the last ship, they will assist when they can."

"Acknowledge Colonel O'Neill." Sam replied.

Sam felt a bit odd with the naval terminology, but that was how the Fleet was being trained.

"Helm, come about to 346 degrees, half a degree up bubble." Lieutenant Harris ordered. "Weapons, load tubes one through five and charge up the Rail Cannons."

"Tubes one through five loaded, Rail Cannons charged." Stapanic replied

"Fire." Sam ordered.

"Fire, Aye." Stapanic replied, firing the weapons.

Five modified missiles with nuclear payloads were launched out of the tubes of the Carter and the Rail Cannons sounded out their deep, slow thuds.

The two Rail Cannons, mounted down the main axis of the ship, operated on the same principal as the close in rail guns on both the Valkyrie and Prometheus Classes, but with one exception. Instead of firing large volumes of small projectiles at rapid speed, the Cannons fired five 120 pound high velocity depleted uranium slugs per minute. The idea was for the heavy hitting slugs to impact the enemy shields and either punch a hole or completely burn out their shield emitters, allowing the missiles to do their work. Of course should a slug hit an enemy with their shield down it had more than enough energy to punch strait through the ship and out the other side.

"Predator Six, break off." Williams yelled into his comms system.

The pilot of the SA43 peeled off from the pursuit of one of the Death Gliders that had broken away from the dogfight on the left edge of the battle. The Glider thought it had made it for a second before it was shredded by one of the Rail Cannon slugs, the slug itself fracturing into hundreds of small shards, most of which impacted harmlessly on the Hatak shield. A few dozen shards also destroyed one of the Carter's missiles. The other Cannon slug impacted the shield at full force but was unable to break through the shield for more than a fraction of a second. Not long enough for any of the remaining missiles to breach the shields but their detonations helped weaken it.

The Hatak fired back, its energy beam slamming into the Cater's shields. Panels overhead sparked.

"Shields down by thirty-five percent." Stapanic reported.

"Evasive." Carter ordered.

"Evasive, aye." Xander repeated. "Helm, Evasive course delta. Weapons, empty the tubes. Fire"

"Evasive course delta, Aye." Ymi replied, jinking the ship out of the main arc of fire of the Hatak.

"Firing, Aye." Stapanic added, as he fired another five missiles.

"White, try and reinforce the shields and hull where you can." Harris added.

"Aye." White replied, and moved off to his small alcove at the back of the bridge and began chanting.

Sam cast a sideways glance at Harris who shrugged. She was still coming to terms with the existence of magic while he had been working closely with the Order for the last eight months and had known about and worked with other magic users for much longer.

Unfortunately the evasive manoeuvres had lost the line of the immobile Rail Cannons on the Hatak, so unlike his previous wide spread Stapanic concentrated this barrage on a single section of the shield.

A massive flash of light off to the right caught everyone's attention for a second.

"Report." Harris snapped.

"Middle Enemy ship has just blown up." Williams reported. "The Joan of Arc is damaged but ok. It's out of the fight. The Kes'lat is heavily damaged and is leaking atmosphere but caused extensive damage to the third ship. The Brynhild is moving to finish off that Hatak."

"Captain. Focused missiles are starting to make a hole in the enemy shields. Our shields are now back up to eighty-seven percent thanks to Battle Mage White." Stapanic reported.

"Helm, bring us around to attack that hole. Weapons, keep up the missile barrage and when we get in position fire the Rail Cannons into the hole." Carter ordered.

"Helm, come left to 346, zero degree bubble. Weapons, full cycle on missiles and prepare to fire the Rail Cannons." Harris repeated

"Left to 346, Aye." Ymi replied.

"Missiles cycling, Rail Cannons charging." Stapanic added.

At they turned the ship shuddered once or twice from close hits where the Goa'uld energy weapons brushed the shield, but all the time, one after another, the Carter's supply of missiles was relentlessly pounding into one small section of the Hatak's shield.

"In position." Ymi reported.

"Fire." Sam ordered.

"Fire." Xander relayed.

"Firing, Aye." Stapanic responded.

The two massive Rail Cannons burst forth their deadly shells, however the final missile to impact the shield prior to their arrival managed to punch through the last of the shield. One of the slugs deviated slightly as it penetrated the hull, making its way through one of the Death Glider bays, setting of a number of secondary explosions, through a storage section and into a corridor where it impacted the head of the ship's Goa'uld who had been fleeing to his personal shuttle, removing not only his head but most of his torso as well, and then out the far hull, sucking the shocked bodyguard into space. The other slug managed to penetrate the hull clearly, went strait through a Jaffa barracks, an armoury and an empty corridor before punching through the engine room and making an abstract art piece of the main reactor, for the few seconds it took for the reactor to go critical and explode.

At the Hatak exploded, the portals on the Carter polarised to preserve the eyesight of the crew.

"Contact the Brynhild. We had destroyed our target. Do they require assistance?" Carter ordered.

"Commodore O'Neill replies no. Their target is disabled. The Tok'Ra have sent a prize crew on board from the Kes'lat. All capital ships have been naturalised." Williams replied. "Predator One and Eater One both report enemy fighters eliminated."

"Rodger. Set a course for home."

"Aye Aye Captain. Helm, set a course for Earth." The XO said.

"Aye Sir. Setting course for Earth." Ymi said.

********

"How were losses on our side?" General Hammond asked, having read SG1's reports.

"No losses on the Carter and the ship is fully operational. Although I would recommend Lieutenant Harris as permanent Captain or XO, assuming he will hand over the rains to the Yard. He worked exceptionally well with the crew." Sam reported, still slightly embarrassed that they had named the ship after her.

"The Joan of Arc sustained a bit of damage. Harris said she would be in dock for at least two to three weeks. She also lost her engineer and pilot in the final hit." Daniel added.

"The Brynhild sustained some minor damage. Two days and she'll be operational. The only casualty was their Order crewmember. She died of a bleed in her brain after taking an entire salvo of Goa'uld fire on her magical barrier after our shields gave out. She gave us enough time to get them back up. I would like to put her in for a posthumous commendation." Jack added.

"I'll talk to the President. What about the Fighters?"

"Well sir. The Silent Predators, who took the bulk of the Glider assault, lost eight birds, six of which managed to eject their cockpits and were rescued, two dead. The Snake Eaters only lost three birds but all six crew of those were KIA." Jack replied.

"Understood."

TBC…


	6. Chapter 6

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

* * *

Xander walked into the new cemetery at the Yard. Along one side of the path were three gravestones, for those fallen on fleet capital ships, and the other had eight, for fleet fighter pilots. As he approached he saw a figure standing in front two of the fighter pilot graves.

"Major Carter." He said, nodding.

"Captain Harris." She said, noting his recent promotion. "Who are you here to see?"

"Katherine Jones." He said, indicating to the grave of the fallen Order member from the Brynhild. "She was a friend. I recruited her. Told her folks that we would take care of her. You?"

"Colonel Wilkins and Major Smith." She replied. "We went through the Academy together."

Both of them lapsed into silence as they said their goodbyes. The formal ceremony had occurred two days before with the full military honours and the weeping relatives. This was a more personal farewell. After several minutes Xander laid a single orchard on the grave. Orchards had been Katherine's favourite. Xander turned and walked back towards the buildings, noticing Sam waiting. As he passed she fell in beside him.

"How's the crew?" she asked.

"Ymi, Williams and White are good. They are working well together, and so is the new mechanic. Stapanic was only on temp assignment, he'll be on Dodge's crew. New Mechanic, Airman Siler." Xander said.

"We have a Sergeant named Siler." Carter said.

"Ours is his Nephew. Large Screwdriver."

"Big Wrench." Sam replied with a smile. "So who's going to command her?"

"We have a new Navy Lieutenant coming in as XO. Have not met them yet but they have a good record. The new Captain has yet to be assigned."

They walked on in silence for a while.

"Why not you in command?" Carter asked. "I recommended you for the post."

Xander stopped dead, staring at Sam.

"I had no idea." He said, starting back through the buildings. "I mean they offered it to me, but there's still so much to do here."

"I understand. It was a pleasure to serve with you. Give my regards to the crew." She replied.

They finally reached the Sam's car back to Cheyenne Mountain and were met by two Airmen who were waiting next to four medium sided metal cases. Each case was marked with a serial number and the name of one of the members of SG1.

"What are these?" Sam asked.

Xander retrieved the case marked Carter and placed it on the hood of the waiting car.

"Take a look." He said. "They are fresh out of the shop."

Sam clicked the locks and opened the case. Inside were two items. The first seemed to be some kind of bodysuit with what looked like dozens of small trauma plates. The second was a new assault rifle.

"Wow" Sam whispered.

Xander could not help but smile at her expression.

'Like a kid in an electronics shop.' He thought, with an odd notion he had said that before.

"The armour is a new Kevlar, Trinium nanotube bodysuit with composite Kevlar and Ceramic trauma plates designed to be worn either by it self under a normal uniform or as the base component of a fully feedback responsive, servo amplifying powered armour suit." He said, before giving a slight grin. "Seeing as each bodysuit is more difficult to fabricate than a Prometheus, the powered armour suits are going to take a while. Don't be fooled though. Those bodysuits are tough enough to take a full clip from an M-16 at fifty meters dead on, or a burst from a SAW. As for Staff weapons, it will take at least five direct shots before being compromised."

"That's amazing!" Sam said.

"Isn't it." Xander agreed. "Of course apart from one prototype that we tested to destruction, those four are the only ones in existence. Each specifically tailored to their owner based on Doctor Frasier's last MRI scan."

"Very nice." Sam said, feeling the material of the bodysuit, before hefting the assault rifle out of the case. "Ugh. Heavy."

"Those are for emergency situations." Xander warned. "We only have five hundred rounds each fabricated. It will be over a month before the next batch is ready."

"A month?" Sam exclaimed. "Why so long?"

"Because they fire .44 calibre rocket propelled, caseless titanium coated high explosive mass reactive tumblers. Once they leave the muzzle, the rocket booster ignites to increase their velocity. With the titanium coating it can penetrate Jaffa armour, normal Kevlar body armour, even lightly armoured vehicles. When the round hits flesh the titanium coating peels off like flower petals and the round starts tumbling. When the round hits any object the rocket boosters auto shut off, the bullet waits one second and then explodes."

"Holy shit!"

"Yeah. As they take 100 round magazines and can fire at 700 rounds a minute, that's a lot of fire power. These rifles have been set to single shot and three round burst. They can be modified later to full auto but for now we don't want anyone "Rock and Rolling" with them. Especially as each bullet costs about 5 thousand dollars to create."

"Got it." Sam replied, nodding thoughtfully. "I will let Colonel O'Neill know."

Sam replaced the rifle and closed the case. At Xander's gesture the two Airmen loaded the other cases in the trunk but Sam kept a hold of hers.

"Let us know when you figure out how to make them faster and cheaper. The fabrication process has been emailed to you."

Sam frowned. How had he known that's what she was thinking? Her frown caused him to chuckle.

"I grew up with a tech genius. You all get this look when you are tying to make things better." He explained. "By the way, the email with the specs came from me. All our tech geeks were drooling with the thought of getting your email address that we could not trust any of them to send it to you."

That actually made Sam blush. She quickly got in the car to cover the blush, missing the lopsided grin that crept across Xander's face.

* * *

The conference table was full. Captain Xander Harris was finishing his briefing to the Fleet and Order leadership group.

"The PM-01 'Prometheus' has taken up station in the orbit of Jupiter after a successful two month shakedown cruise. The PM-02 'Damocles' is still in orbit performing their shakedown cruise. Boarding and counter-boarding exercises were performed upon the Prometheus and Damocles with the Fleet Marines. Their opponents were the members of the Apophis' human training Cadre SG1 deprogrammed who chose to return to Earth rather than their original planets, with SG1 supervising."

Everyone around the table watched the briefing video with images of Captains Rodgers and Nelson and their non-Earth Human troops either raiding the Prometheus or Damocles, dressed as either Jaffa or SGC dressed infiltrators, or acting as Jaffa crew against the Fleet Marines on the borrowed Tok'Ra ship Kes'lat.

Scenes played quickly. Ingtar fire fights in corridors. A seemingly normal scene until some fleet crewmen got ambushed by Rodger's men in Fleet uniforms.

"Full analysis is provided in the reports of SG1, Captains Rodgers and Nelson, and the Fleet Marine commanding officers are all in front of you. Next we will hear from Commander Dodge about the fleet production, then War Mistress Mclay will provide updates on the Order and Lieutenant Gant will give her assessment of the Fleet Marine training."

Xander took his seat at the head of the table as Commander Tom Dodge stood to outline the progress of the shipyard. Prometheus' 3 and 4, named 'Ulysses' and 'Agamemnon', were nearing completion. Two more squadrons each of F302's and SA-43's had been formed. Production of both fighters had recommenced and were still ahead of trained pilots. Another three Valkyries were completed and a third set were well under way.

Finishing his report, Commander Dodge gave way to War Mistress Mclay. The blonde Witch had grown in confidence from the shy girl Xander had met at the SGC into the competent and powerful leader. She outline the training progress and the small but growing number of fully trained Order members.

"What bout the possibility of magical transport for boarding operations as opposed to Rings or Asguard transports?" One of the Fleet Marines asked.

"Not viable." Professor Trickett replied.

"Why not?" Lieutenant Gant asked.

"You can't beat the physics of it." The Professor replied, earning one or two chuckles. "Without the proper ritual, which can take up to eight hours to perform, there are only two or three people on the entire planet, one being the War Mistress, who could do it within viable combat timeframes, if they are willing to pay the price."

"And what would be the price?" Captain Harris asked, not because he did not know, but for the benefit of the other military personnel.

"I would die." Tara replied calmly.

"Suggestion withdrawn." The original Marine said, embarrassed.

Everyone liked the War Mistress. Tara finished the report and gave way for Marine Lieutenant Gant to give her report. The Fleet Marine's training was proceeding nicely. Enough Space Combat Armour, armour that both has better protection than normal Kevlar (but nowhere near as much as the bodysuit given to SG1) and provided full life support, had been produced that specialist Boarding troops, under Lieutenant Gant's command, have been pioneering a specialist space walk style boarding action.

A knock at the door interrupted the meeting, followed by an Airman.

"Captain Harris, Sir? Sorry to interrupt but you have an emergency call from a Mister Giles in Sunnydale." The Airman said.

"Please excuse me. This may be a class nine situation." Xander said, leaving the briefing.

TBC…


	7. Chapter 7

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

* * *

Dawn was sitting by the window of Giles' apartment, only half paying attention to conversation going on in the main room. Buffy and her current boyfriend Riley Finn, who had recently gone AWOL from the Initiative sat on the couch, while Willow and Oz sat on the other two chairs in the main room, each with a laptop in front of them, while the Watcher himself was puttering around in the kitchen making tea.

"That was all the information I was able to get." Riley said.

Dawn looked out the window, and something caught her eye. She watched for a second.

"Um… Giles! Two black Humvee's just pulled up outside." Dawn called. "Six people just got out and are heading this way."

Giles emerged from kitchen and the doorbell rang. Buffy got up and took a position in the middle of the room. Oz put down his laptop and moved over to one of the book cases where a crossbow was hidden. Dawn reached under her chair for the compact crossbow attached to the underside. Giles pulled a short sword from a stand by the door, which had both weapons and umbrellas.

Giles opened the door, stepping back to clear the lines of fire. His first impression was of a tall man in a military uniform and a smallish, dirty blonde haired woman in a long flowing dress, with more figures behind the. Then the man was walking into the apartment, followed closely by the woman and four more people.

"Hey G-Man. What's the Apocalypse?" The man said.

"Xander?" everyone except Riley exclaimed.

* * *

The Scooby gang were all clustered around the couch while Xander sat in one of the single chairs and Tara was in the other. Standing behind Xander were two female Marines, one a petite blonde Lieutenant while the other was a large Sergeant with a shaved head, both in stark contrast to the two who stood behind Tara.

One was male who looked like he belonged in a nineteen-twenties bank with his old fashioned parted hair and the little round spectacles. The other was a slightly overweight woman with a long ponytail of raven black hair. They were a Battle-Mage and a Warrior Witch who were among the best in the Order at combat magic and were extremely proficient with the pistols that were hidden under their clothes.

"Shall we get down to business?" Giles asked into the stunned silence.

"One thing first." Xander said, before turning to the Sergeant. "Mother?"

"Got them right here, Paladin." The big Marine said.

"Captain Riley Finn, you are hereby charged with desertion in the face of the enemy, gross insubordination and unauthorised distribution of Classified information." Xander said formally, as Mother handed Riley some papers. "You are being given the choice to be transferred to my command until the resolution of the current situation, in return for a commuted sentence, or face an immediate Court Martial."

"Xander!" Buffy yelled in shock.

"Commuted to what?" Riley asked.

"Eight to ten years and a Dishonourable Discharge." Xander replied.

"Very well. I accept the transfer." Riley said dejectly.

"Riley! You just accepted a minimum eight year jail term." Buffy said, astonished.

"Buffy." Xander cut in, his voice much more like the old Xander than the hard voice from a moment ago. "We did what we could for him. He was charged with Desertion in the face of the enemy. They execute you for that."

Buffy looked at Riley in confusion, and he nodded in confirmation.

"Bummer." Oz commented.

"Captain Finn, G-Man, please brief Lieutenant Gant on the current situation involving the Initiative." Xander ordered. "Fox, you can use the upstairs study. Oz, can you take Mother, War Mistress Mclay and her associates on a tour of the town highlights."

"Load out?" Mother asked.

"Yes, you can take your Maghook." Xander said with a sigh.

"You are as bad as Shane." Fox said from the stairs.

"Oh come on, Chickadee. I know you dig on yours as much as the Scarecrow. Come on, you are the only ones who can make the Harbour Bridge work." Mother replied.

"At least I didn't use one to stun a Killer Whale." Fox shot back.

"Hey, the bastard took my leg."

"Scoot, the pair of you." Xander put in. "Or do I have to tell Scarecrow about two weeks ago?"

"Alright we're going. You don't play fair Paladin." Mother said walking out the door as Fox finally ascended the stairs.

Xander shook his head at the departing Marines.

"Now I need hugs from my girls." Xander declared with a lopsided grin.

Even though she was the furthest away, Dawn was the first to crash into Xander, followed closely by Willow and finally, a few seconds later, a still confused and slightly angry Buffy first gave him a very light, for her, punch on the arm, before finally joining the group hug.

* * *

SG1 were sitting in the main briefing room with General Hammond and Major Paul Davis from the Pentagon.

"So the first foreign contingent teams will be arriving within the next Twenty-Four hours. One Australian team of Four, two British teams of Six and Two Russian teams of Four will consist of the first contingents. They are also sending teams to the Yard to join the Fleet. The British and Russians are getting a Valkyrie each and will have observer crew on the Prometheus and the Damocles." Major Davis explained.

"What units are the new SG Teams pulled from?" Jack asked.

"SAS for the Australians and British. Spetznaz for the Russians." Jack whistled softly at the response.

"What about the Australians in the Fleet?" Daniel asked.

"They sent twelve." Hammond said. "Six will be on the Prometheus and Damocles, One will be trained on the SA-43's, two will be trained as Pilot and RSO on the F-302's one will be the Pilot on the Joan of Arc and one is an Engineer assigned to the Slayer."

"That's eleven." Jack pointed out. "What about the Twelfth?"

"He has been assigned as Captain of the Carter." Major Davis said reluctantly.

"We're giving the Carter to the Aussies?" Jack exclaimed. "I mean no disrespect. They are good soldiers and great for a laugh, but still."

"I think Major Carter may know this particular Australian." Major Davis replied.

"What makes you think that?" Daniel said.

"When he was shown his new ship, and told its name he responded 'Carter is a beauty. And the ship's not bad either. By the way, tell the Prom Queen she still owes me a Twenty, in colour not Green, and a slab of VB.'" Hammond interjected. "His name is Commander Luke James."

Sam was completely red from embarrassment.

"I think there's a story here." Jack said with a grin.

Everyone sat looking at Sam, who had her head in her hands.

"All I'll say is don't make bets on Two Up while drunk." She said.

"Isn't that illegal in Australia?" Daniel asked.

"Not on January 26th." She replied.

"What's Two Up?" Jack asked, to which he got no response.

TBC…


	8. Chapter 8

Title: All The Difference

Author: Knife Hand

Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated

Spoilers: Has references to all Stargate series seasons. Buffy to the end of Season 3

Rating: MA

Disclaimer: Don't own SG1, Buffy or any other character from a recognised series.

Summary: SG1 gets some help from an unexpected source… The future.

" " denotes speech, ' ' denotes thought.

AN: Deviates from just after Learning Curve in season 3 (1999).

AN2: HayNSW2711, I know that, you know that, but Carter didn't. It was at a private party and the guys wanted to play so they fibbed. Besides in the story she would have been back in the states before ANZAC Day.

* * *

"Colonel, we have four people coming in through the Lowell House entrance." One of the technicians said. "Three are in Marine combat uniforms and the fourth is Captain Finn."

"Security teams scramble." The Colonel ordered before leaving the control room to go and meet the new arrivals.

The elevator opened revealing Xander, Fox, Mother and Riley. Fox and Mother both had their weapons up and ready, aiming them at the security team, who also had their weapons levelled at the elevator. Xander had his sidearm holstered and his assault rifle hanging from a strap as he calmly stepped out of the elevator and handed a piece of paper to the Colonel.

"Colonel, new orders. I, Captain Harris, am hereby relieving you of command." Xander said.

The Colonel waved to the security team to lower their weapons as he read the orders, allowing Fox, Mother and Riley out of the elevator.

"These orders say you are in charge Captain. How does a Marine Captain get put in charge of a top secret Army project?" The Colonel asked.

"One, in this town what you are doing, not that secret." Xander replied. "Two, because I know a hell of a lot more about what you are dealing with than you do."

"That is insubordination, Captain." The Colonel said.

Xander just pulled out his phone, hit a speed dial and passed the phone to the Colonel.

"Hello… Yes, Mr President. Understood sir." The Colonel said, stiffening to attention when he realised who he was talking to.

"Tell him we said hi." Fox said casually.

"Umm… he wants to speak to you, Captain." The Colonel said, handing the phone back.

"Hi, Sir." Xander said into the phone, getting some shocked looks at the informality. "Fox and Mother say hi too. Yes Sir, I'm sure Mother would have but it was Fox who asked. Yes, Sir. I would have to ask, but I can't see any problem. Sir? Of Course sir, we'll arrange it when I get back to the Yard. Yes, Sir, I will pass that on. Say hello to the kids for me. Bye."

Xander hung up the phone, getting incredulous looks from everyone but Fox and Mother, who only looked curious.

"What did he think I would have done?" Mother asked.

"Swore in your greeting." Xander replied.

"Fucking right." Mother replied.

"By the way, Margret and Jennifer asked if you two, and Tara, wanted to go shopping."

"That would be fun. Been a while since I caught up with the First Lady." Fox replied. "Plus Jennifer needs to get out more. Can't be good for a teenager to be cooped up in the White House."

"Alright, let's see about the security of this place, because Murphy is coming and he always brings a big stick." Xander ordered.

Xander started towards the Control room when Mother interrupted.

"Paladin. What did the Pres want that you had to arrange back at the Yard?" Mother asked.

"He wanted a trip on the Damocles. He had so much fun last time with Scarecrow."

* * *

Xander, Fox, Mother, Riley and an Initiative scientist were walking down the cells so Xander can inspect the prisoners.

"Vampire, terminate." Xander ordered at the first cell.

The cell door opened and Mother fired a small, compact stake launcher at the vampire dusting it.

"Kenomat Demon." Xander said at the second cell. "Non-Hostile. Release it."

"Captain." The scientist said. "We are to study and find defences against these unknown enemies."

Xander spun to face the scientist.

"Then read a fucking book." He growled. "Almost every species of Demon have been known for several hundred years along with their weaknesses and weather they are a threat. There is a reason why the legends exist. Also, you could just fucking ask the experts. Now free this illegally detained prisoner or I will personally help her in retribution as authorised under the peace treaty of 1523 B.C."

The cell door was opened and Xander began speaking to the newly released Demon in another language. Mother and Fox were glaring at the scientist when suddenly the lights went out and were replaced by emergency lighting.

"Mother, take Kilmantes here and help release her clan-mates. She says there are at least four in here. They will fight with us. Fox, call in the reinforcements, deployment Gamma Six. Finn, rally the initiative troops." Xander ordered.

Then the cell doors opened. Kilmantes took two steps and then snapped the neck of a Fiarial Demon, while Mother reached for the first weapon she could lay her hands on and fired from the hip at the Vampire coming from further down the hall. That weapon just happened to be her Maghook, which completely caved in the ribs and passed through the Vampire, completely pulverising its heart, and then continued on to strike the head of a large hairy Demon with enough force to send it flying, resulting in it landing against a wall with a broken neck and a pulverised spine.

"Fall back to the main hall." Xander ordered, firing into the approaching Demons.

Kilmantes charged into the Demons with a bellow, which was answered by a second bellow from the side where a second Kenomat joined the fray. A second answering bellow from nearby sounded, followed by a third from further away.

"Mother, stick with us. Kilmantes, good hunting." Xander called.

* * *

"Defensive circle." Xander ordered to the Initiative troopers, before switching to his radio. "Damocles, Paladin. Deploy reserves to my beacon."

"Paladin, Damocles. Deploying in five seconds." Came the reply.

"Initiative troopers, be aware. Reinforcements incoming, do not target flashes. Repeat, do not target the flashes." Xander yelled.

Groups of flashes appeared around the hall, and fading to reveal groups of Fleet Marines in the fully enclosed Space Combat Armour. Each group contained eight Fleet Marines in two concentric circles, the four outer Marines down on one knee, and a single Order member. Picking their targets, the newly arrived Marines set up a devastating crossfire in support of the Initiative Soldiers, while the order members generally threw fire at the deamons. The Initiative solders had formed a defensive barricade in the centre of the room with Paladin, Fox and Mother, the latter screaming obscenities at the Demons.

The large group of demons that had been charging faltered at the devastating fire coming from both Initiative and Fleet positions.

* * *

The Army Colonel, to his credit, had stayed when the alarms sounded as he had been packing, had taken command of a squad of Initiative troopers and had managed to seal several of the access points out of the cells, completely isolating some groups of demons and funnelling the others into a few avenues of approach to the main floor, but was now cut off. His men had managed to make a barricade of tables and various other furniture but he knew it was only a matter of time before his men were killed. That bothered him more that dyeing, having his men killed. The next wave of demons, mostly vampires, approached. They had all learnt to shoot at the necks of vampires.

"I'm out." One of the troopers said.

"Last one." The Colonel said, tossing the trooper his last M16 magazine.

His own rifle went dry and he switched to his sidearm. He saw three of his troops drop their now empty rifles and pull out either combat knives or retractable batons. Then they were upon them. Things got chaotic. Flashing images. Shooting a vampire in the eye and it going down. A vampire dusting and the trooper who killed it going down in a spray of blood to the demon that waded in through the vampire dust. Then a demon was all over him, its claws starting to rip into his chest.

'So this is it.' The Colonel thought, regretful at the loss of his men, when the demon's head jerked suddenly and violently to the right.

The demon's carcass was hauled off the Colonel to reveal the grinning face of another demon.

"Knight send. We help." The Demon growled in barely comprehensible English.

The demons that attacked had broken and fled down a corridor. With a bellow, the demon that had saved him and three others, all sporting wounds, charged after the fleeing demons with what could be called glee, pouncing on the stragglers and ripping them apart.

"Paladin, come in, over." The colonel said.

"Colonel? Glad to hear you are alive. What's your status? Over." Paladin's voice came back over the radio.

"We isolated about half the cells and funnelled the rest through the western corridors." He replied. "My team is pretty beat up, we need medical assistance. Over."

"Can you give precise co-ordinates? Over." Paladin asked.

"We are just outside room 386, sector G7. Over."

"Rodger that. We have medivac on way. Paladin, over and out."

"Alright boys, medivac's coming." The colonel began and was stopped by a flash of light.

"Somebody call for a medivac?"

The light had faded to reveal six people, five of whom were dressed in fatigue. Three were clearly medics, who instantly went to work on the wounded men, two were a security detail with their weapons trained down the two corridors. The sixth, the one who had spoken, looked like a twenties banker, right down to the glasses and the parted hair. While he looked like a banker, he handled the pistol in his hands with an air of familiarity and, when a lone vampire came around a corner, was able to fry it with a fireball before the security trooper could react.

"Three are critical, we need to get them to medbay ASAP." One of the medics said.

"Alright. Williamson to Damocles, fifteen to beam directly to medbay. Over." The banker said, before smiling. "I've always wanted to say that."

Then the world disappeared into a flash of white.

* * *

Four of them walked down the formerly concealed corridor to the entrance of the secret lab.

"War Mistress, please set up a one way kinetic barrier just on the other side of the door. Fox, Mother, cover her." Paladin ordered, earning nods from the three women.

Xander waited until Tara had raised the kinetic barrier before stepping though the door.

"Who are you?" the human/demon/machine hybrid asked.

Xander simply raised a thin barrelled gun and fired with a puff of compressed air.

"Damocles, execute." He ordered.

Adam sneered and started to change his hand into a machine gun when he abruptly disappeared in a flash of white light.

"Clear." Xander called, and the three women entered the room. "Well that was easy."

"Hey Paladin, where the fuck did they send him?" Mother asked.

"Into the heart of the sun." Xander responded, whistling as he walked out.

* * *

"You want to say goodbye?" Xander asked.

"You don't mind?" Riley countered.

They were sitting in a hummer outside Giles' apartment.

"No, I don't mind. I get why you did what you did. So does the president, which is why you got the deal, but you still deserted and leaked classified info. Intel on the Initiative program hit the president's table the day Giles called me, so we would have moved anyway." Xander replied. "Besides, Buffy deserves to have you say goodbye. Her father never did when he walked out."

Riley simply nodded and the two got out of the truck and walked up to the apartment, and were both hit by flying Summers women the instant they were inside the door. Buffy clinging to Riley and Dawn clinging to Xander.

Giles and Tara looked up from where they were both sipping tea, while Willow and Oz were sitting on the couch, Willow with red eyes from crying.

"Let me guess, Willow tried to break through your wards." Xander said, extricating himself from Dawn and earning a nod from Tara. "Day's done. You can let down the wards. And Wills, Tara is not called the War Mistress for nothing."

"Why did you lock us in here?" Buffy demanded.

"One, this mess was made by the military, so the military cleans it up. Two, you would have gotten in the way." Xander replied, holding up a hand to forestall Buffy's protest. "You're way is fine for you, Buff, but in the battle we just had it would have gotten you killed. By our side, not theirs. A military operation is just not something you are trained to handle. Now, I have to leave in twenty minutes, and Riley has to come with me. Do you want to spent that time saying goodbye to him, or yelling at me?"

Buffy pouted and glared, but went off to say goodbye to Riley. Xander drifted over to Tara and Giles, with Dawn following him.

"Any problem?" Xander asked.

"No." Tara replied.

"Recommendation?"

"No. We'll send someone to supervise." Tara decided.

Xander knew what that meant, but he reluctantly agreed.

Giles looked confused for a second, but then Dawn spoke.

"So, why do you think Willow is not suited for the Order?" Dawn said quietly.

"Dawnie, when you turn eighteen, if you want, come see me. We can always use perceptive people in the Fleet." Xander responded.

TBC…


End file.
